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Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Goodbye Costco

Did anyone notice the little change to my facebook personal info that occurred just a few days ago? Probably not. That's ok. I'll tell you what that change was: On Saturday, my info that lists where I work went from "Works" to "Worked" at Costco.
On Friday, I signed my resignation papers and am now officially now longer employed by Costco Wholesale as a Bakery wrapper!

It was a wonderful feeling to type in that end date for several reasons. A few being:

No more heavy lifting and bending - this was especially difficult at the end of my pregnancy as I'm sure you can imagine.

I get my holidays back! No worry of working graveyard shifts or crazy hours the weeks before Christmas and Thanksgiving and every holiday, so YOU don't have to make your own dinner rolls and/or Pumpkin pie. Haha. :) I'm not bitter anymore, I promise.

No more managers looking over my shoulder telling me if I'm working as fast as they would like me to all while taking two hour naps in the break room.

No more workplace drama and politics everyday - you know, the kind that is present in most every job that includes people.

AND, the #1 reason being that I absolutely love staying home with my little babe and am so happy to spend my days being his mom! :)

But, this wouldn't be a very fair post if I didn't also include the reasons why I will miss working at Costco everyday, too:

Working at Costco was a great job with some awesome benefits - they payed me much better than the average college student in Provo, and gave me benefits, even for only working part-time. These benefits made Lincoln affordable, and they also bought me several boxes of contacts and a couple pairs of glasses for $10.

I loved being in the know about the latest Costco deals and products.

Getting to eat all the yummy samples during my breaks.

The smell of the onion bagels when they came fresh out of the oven. Oh, and the smell of the apple pies too.

Rachel - I miss talking with you everyday! It was always refreshing to work with you - you always worked fast and never had anything to do with the drama. You are an example of the believers.

Jen - Oh Jen! My dear pregnant/mamma friend. I love you. I will miss our debates and the fresh perspective on life you always shared with me each day.

Tyler - You are crazy and hilarious. You know, you can still post awkward youtube videos on my facebook any time you like. I'm just sad I won't get your personal commentary on them everyday anymore.

Lori - I miss your beautiful smile. You light up everyone's life who you come in contact with. You make me want to be a better person. You always made me feel special. I wish you every good thing a person could ever have.

Drew - The intellectual conversationalist of the bakery. I loved your sense of humor and your ability to tie life to all things medieval through your extensive gaming experience. But, really - we had some real conversations and I miss talking with you everyday. Even if you were just trying to irk me at times - and there were really only a couple times when you actually did. Haha.

Lance - What am I supposed to do without your singing in my life?! My parodies of the latest songs on the radio will always be pale in comparison. Thanks for the laughs. I will always think of you when I hear the corndog song.

Anthony - you're really not as stoney-hearted as you like to pretend you are and we all know it. We loved all your practical jokes, too - just as long as we weren't the one being pranked. ;)

Tammy - I love you friend! You always had a listening ear to lend and you gave me some of the sincerest compliments that I will treasure forever.

Pam - You were the heart and hands of the bakery! You always had my back, and I always loved the chances I got to talk with you about life - all while working up a sweat!

Lala - Your laugh is the best! It could be heard everywhere in the bakery and made us all feel happy, and laugh too.

Omi -You were the cool fun girl of the bakery! Thanks for teaching me the ropes of cake decorating and for giving me confidence while I was learning, even when my stuff was ugly.

Jackie - Did you know that from my first day in the bakery, I always thought you were so beautiful and refined because of the way you wore your hairnet and because of the fact that I never saw you look anything less than stunning? You are a beautiful cake decorator and person.

Marie - The wrapping table felt a HUGE loss when you left to work at the decorator's station. No only because you work your little buns off, but because you have a way of listening and talking with others that makes a person feel loved.

Lisa - I've probably lost a few pounds by not seeing you so often around the holidays in the bakery! Haha. You care about people, and everyone who works with you feels that and loves you for it.

Becky - I know everyone else felt like they had to scramble when you came around (hehe - She was the one who checked our sanitation buckets every day p.s.) but, I loved it. You always saw me and loved me and were ecstatic about the things that mattered the most to me.

Traci - You were real and fun through all the crap of life. I loved you for that. I always loved talking with you.

Jacob - You are a kind guy and easy to be around. Working with you always helped me feel less stressed. Thanks for your friendship and your listening ear.

Karin - You are all girl! Thanks for sharing your dreams with me. I'm happy for the many happy up and coming events in your life.

Ben - You are loud and crazy. And, even though I tried hard not to like you because of my preconceived notions about you - you are a skilled salesman, a good guy, and quite enjoyable to talk with too. I wish you all the best.

Barbara - I will forever miss talking with you and seeing you each night. You work so hard and are so under appreciated. You are a saint in a hundred ways you never get credit for. I miss your stories about Ghana and your thick thick accent that took me such a long time to understand.

Diana - You made me feel like a superstar! Thanks for noticing the good I contributed, and for getting us all to work and care about our work.

Dave - We were both too strong-headed to ever really get along, but we did have a few really good conversations and you gave me few bits of some really good advice about life. So, I think I'll just choose to remember those most.

Ashley - Well, you worked for WDS, but I did love seeing my sweet cousin several times a week (and eating your samples)! :)

The woman in the pharmacy who shared her miscarriage #1 story with me and was still genuinely happy for me when Lincoln continued to grow and develop even though she lost her baby who was due at the same time as Lincoln was.

There were more people too, some who worked in other departments, some who came and left: Gary, Frank, Braxton, Britta, Wayne, Maricarmen, Mark, Denise, Christa, Chelsea, Jeffrey, Pat, Shauna, Kyle, guy in the food court, gal with the long hair at the front door, and on and on and on. I know I'm probably forgetting some important people. If I forgot to mention you in this post, I really am sorry.

For all the reasons above (not to mention the reason that I really just love shopping at Costco and feel it a very worthy place to shop), Friday - the day I quit - was also the day I went to the membership counter and paid for my first Costco membership in almost three years. Thanks for the money and a place to work, Costco. But most importantly, thanks for the memories and for crossing my path with other people who touched my life in so many ways.